Friday, February 3, 2012

The myth of the American Adult

From the time we start public school, the myth is being ingrained into our little minds as "the one truth".  This myth tells us that if we are obedient to our teachers and do as they want, we will succeed in school, which will open the doorway to college, which will lead to having a career and "earning a living".
The more I think about this, the more it seems that this system is for the benefit of corporations and the extremely rich and powerful people who run them.
When we are "earning a living", what does that entail?  Usually a mortgage, which is being paid to the banks with large sums of interest.  Or if rent, then it's being paid to a landlord who then pays the banks with interest.  Utilities for a house which use fossil fuels and natural resources: electricity (coal usually), and natural gas.  An automobile to get to and from the work that is necessary to "earn a living", and all the oil that comes with it.
The unfortunate (or maybe fortunate?) thing is, this myth is starting to crack in a lot of places.  It no longer makes sense to take out a loan for a house that may decrease in value.  It doesn't make sense to go to college just to get a job, because there may not be a job waiting for you.  I think college only really makes sense for people who have a specific goal in mind, and are passionate about what they are studying.
We need to give the next generations a new paradigm.  Poor, needy, homeless and similar terms should be self-defined only.  People need free and readily available information about how to stay sheltered, keep warm and keep fed.  Indigenous Knowledge (IK) is an incredible resource for everyone in the world, but a lot of it has been destroyed along with the people who kept it.  It is in the interest of most everyone in the world (minus the corporations) to support all indigenous people, their lives, their lands, their languages and their incredibly valuable knowledge.

2 comments:

  1. thank you for writing this! helped my day :) i love how you can cut to the heart of the matter! thanks jesse...

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    1. Oh good! This reality is really hitting home for me now that we're trying to get out of our mortgage. We did some dumb stuff without thinking twice about why we were doing it. Hope you are well!

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